My Best Friend's Wedding
by nickelback2001
Summary: Best friends Damon and Elena haven't seen each other since that one night a year and a half ago...the night that broke their friendship. But when they run into each other on the night of Elena's engagement to Stefan, will Elena still marry Stefan? Or will she rekindle her past feelings for Damon? Delena.
1. A Proposal

**Disclaimer: I do not own "The Vampire Diaries" or any of its characters. If I did, Delena would have been together by season one :)**

* * *

Tonight was the night. Elena was sure of it. Her boyfriend of a year, Stefan, had gotten the two of them dinner reservations at a fancy Italian restaurant in Richmond which was unusual since they usually dined in their hometown, Mystic Falls.

Elena met Stefan at the hospital where they both worked at. Elena was a nurse who was assigned to take care of an old woman who Stefan was performing brain surgery on. It was a classic boy meets girl situation. Their eyes met when Elena walked into the room to take the woman's vitals, and Stefan instantly became infatuated. Fifteen minutes later, Stefan asked Elena out to coffee in the hospital's crappy cafeteria, and the two have been joined at the hip ever since.

Their mutual friend, Caroline, who is a paramedic, was also acting very suspicious at the moment. She rushed up to Elena as she was walking out to the parking lot.

"Let me help you get ready tonight," she exclaimed, "I was thinking you should wear your nice black dress with the plunging neckline, I never see you wearing it, and it's by far the prettiest dress you own!"

_The black dress._ Elena had purposefully been keeping it buried in the back of her closet and out of sight. The last time she wore it was when... ugh she pushed the memory out of her mind. She didn't need to relive what was simultaneously the best and worst night of her life: the last night she saw _him_.

Elena shook herself out of her depressing thoughts.

"Yeah, I could really use your help Care, I think tonight is _the night_."

Caroline tried to contain her excitement, but Elena could tell she was hiding something. "I don't know what you're talking about," she grinned.

Elena and Caroline made it to Elena's apartment a speedy ten minutes later, her anxiousness causing the usually cautious driver that Elena was to go 50 mph in a 30 mph zone. Caroline immediately began searching through her closet, pushing dress after dress away in search of _the black one_.

"Aha! You have to wear this one Lena! It'll look so sexy on you!"

Unfortunately, Caroline was right. It was Elena's only dress that was appropriate for such a fancy occasion. She mentally cursed herself for not going shopping for another dress. But it was too late, she only had an hour until Stefan picked her up. Reluctantly, Elena agreed and set the dress aside on her bed. Caroline then went into full beautician mode and began transforming her bare face into one of a seductress. She brought out Elena's large brown doe eyes with a brown smokey eye with black liner that was also smoked out to lift her eye shape. Caroline then bronzed up her olive skin tone and applied a nude gloss to Elena's lips. With a half an hour left, she went to work on Elena's hair. She curled, teased, and brushed out Elena's long chocolate locks so that they fell into tousled waves. Caroline then forced her to put on the dress and spritzed on some vanilla perfume as the finishing touch.

"All done! Stefan won't be able to keep his paws off of you!"

Elena slipped on her black heels and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She had to agree with Caroline's sentiments, but past memories kept on nudging themselves into the surface of her mind…

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of knocking at her door.

"He's here! Have fun Lena!"

Carefully, Elena walked over to the door and opened it, revealing a suit clad Stefan holding a bouquet of her favorite flowers, lilies.

"Wow, you look so beautiful Elena," he said with love pouring out of his eyes.

"Thanks, you're not so bad yourself," she replied, giving him a quick peck on the cheek.

Stefan escorted Elena out to his red Porsche, opening the passenger door for her like the gentleman he always was. They spent most of the car ride to Richmond in silence, but holding hands: the anxious tension of what was to come filling the car. After what seemed like an eternity, Stefan pulled up to the restaurant and handed off his keys to the valet. He gave the hostess their reservations, and she ushered them to a table for two with a view of the twinkling city lights.

The waiter handed them menus, and Stefan ordered a bottle of expensive red wine for the table. After a few minutes of thinking, they ordered their meals, and it became a waiting game for what Stefan was going to do next.

"Elena," he started out, looking into her doe eyes.

Elena took a rather big sip of her wine and met Stefan's green orbs.

"I love you, Elena. I can't picture spending my life with anyone other than you. Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" He then pulled out a black box, and presented its contents to her.

Inside the box, sat a big, oval cut diamond ring shining in all of its glory. Elena looked back up at Stefan's eyes.

"Yes."

But at the very moment she choked out the word, Elena caught a glimpse of two piercing blue eyes watching her behind Stefan. Eyes she would be able to recognize anywhere. The eyes that were attached to _him._

And they were the last thing Elena saw before blackness filled her mind, and she fell to the floor.


	2. A Chance Encounter

**Damon**

The last year and a half has been a living hell for Damon. He fucked up. Badly.

Damon and Elena had been best friends since they could remember. Elena's mother, Miranda, was best friends from high school with Damon's mother Lillian. Although Damon was born first, Elena followed closely behind, being born two months later. From there on, Elena and Damon did everything together, practically spending every waking moment in each other's presence. They learned how to walk together, ride bikes together, and were each other's first kiss after a game of spin the bottle in middle school. However, they were always platonic, even if they didn't want to be. Until that night…

After that night, Damon had to get out of Mystic Falls. Everything about that town reminded him of _her._ There was the Mystic Grill where they would spend every single Saturday night eating cheeseburgers and playing pool. There was their old high school where he would spend his time passing notes with her. And of course there was his very own bedroom where their hot, writhing bodies collided…

So, Damon packed his bags and moved to Richmond. He made every excuse possible: it was a shorter commute, there was a lively nightlife, etc. But, he knew in actuality, he just couldn't stand the thought of not being with _Elena_.

Tonight was just like any other night for Damon. Lonely, but not alone. Damon had been with his fair share of women, trying to erase the memory of her, but to no avail. And tonight, he had a date. Her name was Andie, and she was a sexy news reporter that his colleague Ric set him up with. He decided to take her to this brand new Italian restaurant in the city, mostly just because he missed his mom's Italian cooking. The hostess sat them at a table for two right next to the window where they could see the entire city lit up in the night. They ordered a bottle of wine and started making small talk while they waited for their meals to arrive. That's when her heard her name.

"Elena," he heard the man a table over say in a soft voice.

That grabbed Damon's attention. He blocked out whatever Andie was saying and his full focus was on what the man was going to say next.

"I love you, Elena. I can't picture spending my life with anyone other than you. Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Those words hit Damon like a thousand knives being stabbed into his body over and over again. But nothing could've prepared Damon for what he heard next.

"Yes."

Now, someone began to twist each knife that stabbed his body while pouring acid into each wound. And in that moment of agony, Damon met her doe eyes and saw the shock and hurt in them. Until he didn't anymore. She had fainted at the sight of him.

After a moment of shock, the man swooped forward and checked her breathing and her eyes. He must be some sort of doctor (not that Damon was jealous or anything). Damon took this time to take in the sight of her. Her makeup was dark and smokey, her hair fell into tousled waves, and she was wearing a black dress with a plunging neckline…

Suddenly, vivid memories came rushing into his mind. Him unzipping that black dress, his fingers lingering at the small of her back for a moment. The softness of her skin as he started kissing down her body. The moans coming out of her mouth, begging him for more…

Damon was brought out of his nostalgia when he saw Elena's eyelids flutter open and heard one breathy word come out of her mouth.

"Damon."

**Elena**

Elena didn't know how to process this. At the same moment that the man of her dreams proposed to her, the man who hurt her in so many ways, who she loved so fiercely, reappeared in her life.

"Who's Damon?" Stefan asked, looking down at her worriedly.

Before Elena could come up with an answer, she heard a "Hi, it's nice to meet you. I'm Damon, a childhood friend of Elena's." And once again, those icy blue eyes looked down at her and pierced right through her soul.

"It's nice to meet you Damon, I'm Stefan, Elena's now fiancé," Stefan chuckled.

"The ring isn't on her finger yet," Damon remarked.

So, Stefan slid the ring on Elena's fourth finger, and she watched the hurt sink into his eyes. It was like someone took a knife and continually stabbed her all over her body: she had always hated seeing Damon hurt.

Stefan then started making small talk with Damon being the good person he is, and she took this time to really look at him for the first time in a year and a half. His inky locks were still perfectly ruffled, he had a bit of stubble giving him an older appearance, and his toned muscles could be seen underneath his black button up. She could still remember the feeling of her body being pressed up against those muscles tightly as he drove deeper inside her…

But that was all in the past now, she is with Stefan, and just agreed to marry him which she wouldn't take back at all. Nothing's changed. Damon still hurt her, no matter how much she wants his arms wrapped around her at the moment.

Elena finally noticed that Damon had company: an attractive woman sitting at his table. She felt a ping of jealousy in her chest. It was like someone was hitting her heart with a rubber band over and over again.

Finally, Damon turned his head away from Stefan to face her again.

"Elena."

"Damon."


	3. That One Night

**_A year and a half ago_**

Today was the worst day of Elena's life. Today was the day she had to say her final goodbyes to her mother, Miranda, who lost her battle to cancer a mere three days ago.

Currently, she was pacing the entirety of her small apartment in her black dress and heels in the midst of having a panic attack. The funeral service was in an hour and she was supposed to be the one to give the eulogy. But how could she even put down in words how much her mom meant to her and how great of a person she was? Clear, complete thoughts couldn't even begin to form in Elena's head at the moment. When she caught a glimpse of the framed picture on her nightstand of her and her mother at her graduation for nursing school, she lost it. She fell to her bedroom floor. Tears stung her eyes and effectively ruined the makeup she applied earlier. Elena was so lost in her grief that she didn't hear her front door open and the soft footsteps that were heading her way. The figure sat next to her on her bedroom floor, encircled her trembling body in his strong arms, and began to stroke her soft tresses. She didn't even need to look up to know who it was. Elena would be able to recognize his cologne even if he was in a room with a hundred other men. It was _Damon_. _Her Damon._ Her best friend since the day she was born. And secretly, the man that she was desperately, head over heels in love with. Although, she could never tell him that.

Damon started rubbing her back and successfully soothed Elena out of her panicked state. He tilted her chin up so that she would meet his eyes. He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and finally spoke.

"It's gonna be ok, Elena. I'm going to make sure you get through this."

"How am I supposed to give this eulogy, Damon? There's too much to put into words."

"How about you just say goodbye to her then," Damon said softly.

Elena could do that. She nodded her head that was pressed against his chest, and sunk deeper into his embrace. He rocked her body back and forth, and simply held her without saying another word, knowing that that's what she needed at the moment.

An eternity later, it was time to go to the service. Damon led her out to his car, and they drove to the church in a comfortable silence. He took her hand in his, and would give it a reassuring squeeze every so often.

They arrived at the church, and took their seats in the front pew, Damon never letting go of Elena's hand. The pastor led them in prayer, and then it was finally time for Elena to give her eulogy. Damon gave her hand a gentle squeeze, and gave her a reassuring nod. Elena stood up in front of the church, and started speaking:

"The worst day of loving someone is the day you lose them. And I loved my mother so much, and I know that all of you did too. My mom, Miranda, touched so many people's lives…," she said softly as her eyes scanned the audience.

Her eyes landed on Damon's icy blue ones, and her heart started to run a marathon in her chest.

"...and I want to thank each one of you for taking the time to say goodbye to her with me. Goodbye, mom. I love you."

Elena rejoined Damon at their seat, and let her head rest on his shoulder. He retook her hand, and started rubbing circles with his thumb. She sighed against him, but felt content in his presence.

The rest of the service went smoothly, and the churchgoers went to Elena's parents' house for the reception. After a few hours of Elena making idle chat with her extended family and her mom's friends over fruit kebabs and macaroni salad, she had had enough. Her eyes scanned the crowd of people hoping to seek out Damon's icy blue ones. She found him making small talk with Mrs. Fell who used to babysit the both of them when they were children. She thanked Mrs. Fell for coming, and pulled Damon aside.

"I don't know about you, but I could really use a drink. A hard one."

"Well let's go back to my apartment, I have bourbon, scotch, all kinds of stuff," Damon told her.

Twenty minutes later, they were sitting on Damon's couch, both nursing glasses of hard liquor. After one glass, Elena was starting to feel a buzz. She had always been such a lightweight. They sat once again in a comfortable silence, watching the crackling fire that he made. Around midnight, Elena felt her inhibitions begin to leave her. Any day could be her last, and it was about time that she started to live her life the way she wanted to. She turned to Damon, and her brown doe eyes met his blue ones.

"I just wanted to say thank you, Damon. And not just for tonight. I don't know what I would do without you."

Damon's eyes softened, "There's no need to thank me, Elena. That's what best friends are for. And besides, I know you would do the same for me."

Elena's heart fluttered in her chest, and the comfortable warmth that was Damon spread all over her body. For the third time that day, Damon once again pulled her into an embrace against his chest. But unlike the other times, Elena tilted her head up so that their faces were barely two inches apart. She could feel his hot breath, and it sent heat straight down to her core. Her eyes focused on his lips, and she could feel him gazing down at hers. Slowly, she closed the gap and caught his soft lips in a gentle kiss. After a brief moment of surprise, Damon began kissing Elena back with a fiery passion that she was unprepared for. She opened her mouth and let him in, and they began to explore each other's mouths. Damon flipped Elena over so that her back was pressed against the couch, and he was on top of her. She looped her arms around his shoulders, pulling him closer to her body. She wrapped her legs around his waist, seeking any friction to dampen the raging inferno that was her core.

"This needs to come off," she almost growled, unbuttoning his shirt.

"Ditto," Damon breathed, as he reached behind her to unzip her black dress.

Elena ran her hands down Damon's chest all the way down, feeling his toned stomach. Damon began planting hot kisses down her neck, sliding her dress off of her shoulders. He continued to kiss down her collar bone to the top of her breasts that were pushed up in a black lacy bra. He once again reached behind her and unhooked her bra, sliding it off of her body. Damon then continued to kiss down her body, taking a pert nipple in his mouth. Elena moaned at his touch, her toes curling at the intensity of the pleasure.

"Please Damon," Elena breathed, not knowing what she was begging for.

Damon then stood them up, and slid off the rest of her dress so that she was left in her black lacy thong. Elena's hands immediately went to his belt, unbuckling it and tugging on his dress pants so that he was left in his boxers. Damon took a moment to look into Elena's large brown doe eyes before pulling her close to him in a fiery kiss. Elena wrapped her long tan legs around Damon's waist, and he carried her to his bedroom. He gently laid her onto his bed, kneeling down so his face was inches away from her hot core. He slid her thong off, and began sweeping his tongue where she wanted it the most.

"More," Elena moaned, not being able to complete full sentences.

Damon then began fingering her, sending Elena into euphoria.

"I need you Damon, now."

Damon slid off his boxers, and climbed on top of her again, pulling her into a passionate kiss. Elena rubbed herself on his hard length, coating him in her wetness. With one thrust, Damon was inside of her, causing Elena to scream out in pleasure. He kept up a fast rhythm, her hips meeting his with every thrust. Elena hooked her arms around and pulled him even closer to her body, digging her nails into his back which caused Damon to growl. He lifted her body so that she was straddling him, and began thrusting harder. Elena kissed him hard, their tongues battling for dominance.

"I'm close," Damon breathed out.

"Me too," Elena moaned.

He reached between their bodies and began rubbing her clit with his thumb. That sent Elena over the edge. She yelled out his name as her orgasm overtook her, her walls squeezing her length. And with that, he moaned out her name as his release hit him.

After a moment of panting, they unhooked their bodies and laid down on his bed, trying to steady their breathing.

"So Damon…," Elena started, "...I think we need to talk about what just happened."

"Emotions ran high today, Elena. That's it. You needed a release. You're my best friend, Lena. And I don't want anything to jeopardize that. It was just for tonight."

"So you had pity sex with me, Damon?!" Elena screeched. "Fuck you. Just when I thought that maybe you felt the same way."

"You have feelings for me?"

"Of course I do! How could I not when you're my favorite person in the world," Elena yelled.

"I'm sorry, I never knew you felt that way, Lena. Why didn't you tell me before?" He said softly.

"Because of this Damon. Obviously, you don't share the same feelings, even though we have little moments all of the time. I guess they were fake."

And with that, Elena began searching around Damon's apartment, pulling on her clothes.

"Elena, wait. You're upset about your mom, why don't we talk this out in the morning?"

"Well, we wouldn't have to talk things out if you thought of me even remotely in that way, so I'm going to leave."

"At least let me drive you home."

"No, I can't even stand to look at you right now."

She pulled out her phone, and got an Uber ride. The Uber arrived in two minutes, and she walked out of his life for what she thought would be forever.


	4. Post Engagement Blues

"_Elena."_

"_Damon."_

Damon nodded his head once at her, the hurt in his eyes very apparent.

"I'll let you get back to your dinner. I've missed you Lena."

Sincerity poured out of his melodic voice. All Elena wanted to do was to pour her heart out to him and to tell him the truth. She desperately missed him-she missed the way he talked passionately about his interests, the way he could crack her up no matter the situation, the way he made her feel alive-she needed her best friend back. However, pride swelled up in Elena. The memory of Damon's rejection replayed in her mind, reopening the wound in her heart that she wasn't sure could ever fully heal. He didn't deserve her practically begging him to take her back. He broke her trust that night when he led her on-and it was going to take a lot for her to trust him again. So, Elena simply nodded her head at him too, trying to act like his presence had no effect on her-but Damon could always see right through her.

They went back to their separate tables, and her and Stefan continued on with their night. They ate their meals, talked wedding plans, and shared their ideas about their future together. As they walked out of the restaurant, Elena glanced behind her, but _he was gone._

When they made it back to her apartment, Stefan caught her lips in a tender kiss. Elena deepened the kiss, and hooked her arms around his neck, lightly tugging at his hair. Stefan then literally swept her off her feet and carried her through her front door bridal style. He brought her into her bedroom, and carefully laid her on the mattress. She wrapped her legs around his waist and brought his body closer to her. Stefan switched positions so that she was straddling him, and he started unzipping the black dress. Memories of her night with Damon flashed through her mind. Damon sliding the dress off of her and all of the pleasure that followed…

"Actually babe, I'm exhausted. A lot happened tonight." She smiled and pointed at the ring on her finger. "I'll call you tomorrow."

"Alright, see you tomorrow _fianccé."_

She waited until Stefan left her apartment to have her mental breakdown. Tears began streaming down her cheeks, and she began to gasp for air like a fish out of water. Elena pried that wretched dress off of her body and sunk to the floor. She wished Damon was here with her-he always knew how to comfort her when she was upset. _But she was alone._ She crawled over to her bookcase and pulled out her old photo album which were filled with childhood photos of them together. Baby photos of their faces covered in spaghetti, photos of the Kindergarten graduation, photos of Damon standing proudly next to his first car with her in the passenger seat, and photos of the last birthday party she threw for him-nearly two years ago. It's crazy how much her life changed in a mere two years, she went from spending almost everyday with Damon to cutting him out of her life cold turkey. Staring at the photos of her and Damon made Elena nostalgic for those times of her life again-they were simpler times, times she desperately wanted to get back to. But life moves on, and so did Elena. As she stared down at the diamond glistening on her fourth finger, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret. She loves Stefan. Immensely. He is good to her and would never hurt her. But in that moment on her bedroom floor surrounded by photos of her and Damon, Elena couldn't help but feel that she was making one of the biggest mistakes of her life.

**Damon**

God he had missed _her. _He missed the little vein that popped out in her forehead when she was angry, he missed that little snort she would make when he made her laugh too hard, but most of all he missed her smile-her real smile-that was reserved for mostly him.  
Damon knew what he needed to do. He promptly dropped off Andie at her apartment without a kiss goodbye. He ran back to his car and pulled out his phone, dialing his old friend Enzo who was in the real estate business.

"Enzo? Hi, It's Damon. I'm moving back to Mystic Falls…"

**Elena**

Elena woke up with a start. Ugh, it felt like her body had been run over. She made her way to the bathroom and sighed over her appearance. Her eyes were red and puffy with dried mascara smudged underneath them, her skin was yellowish and dull, and her lips were cracked and colorless. She hopped into the shower, attempting to fix the bird's nest that she called her hair. The hot water calmed her and soothed her aching muscles. After her shower, she sighed again at how much she needed to do today. So, she called over the best planner she knew. Caroline.

When Caroline arrived at her apartment fifteen minutes later, she was bouncing off the walls with excitement.

"Show me the ring, Elena!"

So, Elena held out her left hand to Caroline, showing her the huge rock on her fourth finger.

"Oh my god, I am so happy for you two!" Caroline cried, pulling Elena into a bone crushing hug.

"So Caroline, I want to get married in one month. I'm going to need your help…"


	5. Friends Again

Caroline had ten different bridal magazines spread out on Elena's dining room table, and she pointed out a billion different things to Elena every two seconds.

"So I think your theme should be classic and romantic with the colors being dark red and champagne since it's going to be in the fall...you should get married at the Lockwood Mansion and we can decorate the entire space with red roses...Elena, are you paying attention to any of this? There is a lot of work to be done!"

"I'm sorry, Care. I really appreciate your help. It's just all so overwhelming."

Caroline's eyes softened, "Are you sure you want to get married in a month, I mean you'll have to get a wedding dress off the rack!"

"Yeah, I'm sure. I've chosen my future life and I want to start living it. As soon as humanly possible."

"Ok well, we need to start looking for wedding dresses for you as soon as possible. Alterations take time you know."

"Then let's go to the bridal salon now. I want to get this over with."

Elena and Caroline arrived at the salon twenty minutes later, and Caroline immediately began searching through the racks of white dresses. She pulled five of them off the rack and sent her in the dressing room. Elena slipped on the first dress. It was a ballgown silhouette, with lace embroidery and a sweetheart neckline that showed off Elena's decolletage. It was pretty, but she felt weighed down by the massive skirt. So, she moved onto the next dress. This one was slinky and satin which definitely showed off her soft curves, but it wasn't what she had in mind for walking down the aisle in. Elena pulled on the next dress and immediately went into shock: it was perfect. It was lacy and clung tight to her body, but had a skirt that flared out mid thigh with a long train. It had thicker straps that supported her, but it also had a bit of a plunging neckline that was not so matronly. Elena truly felt like a bride. She wiped away the tears prickling at her eyes. She would've traded anything in the world to have her mom with her right now.

Feeling overwhelmed, Elena pulled off the dress and called out to Caroline, "I'm going to step outside for a bit, I need some fresh air."

After putting on her regular clothes, she stepped outside underneath the hot Virginia sun. She walked across the street and sat down on a park bench, taking deep breaths to calm herself. She closed her eyes for a moment and reopened them, finding herself staring into blue ones. Uninvited, Damon took the seat next to her.

"What are you doing here, Damon? Don't you live in Richmond now?"

"Not anymore. I'm back for good."

"What changed your mind?" She asked him curiously.

"You. I'm tired of trying to stay away from you, Lena. I wasn't lying last night when I said that I missed you."

"What are you expecting me to say, Damon?"

"That you missed me too," he said softly, earnesty in his eyes.

Elena gently took his hand and squeezed it, and then peered into his beautiful blue eyes, "I have missed you, Damon. So fucking much."

Damon hooked his arms around her and pulled her into a hug. She took in the scent of his cologne, and pressed her head into the crook of his neck.

"Look, Damon. I think we should talk about that night."

Damon pulled away, "We don't have to talk about that right now," he said with a pained look on his face.

"Please, just hear me out. It was wrong of me to storm out on you. I pushed a lot of expectations onto you so suddenly and out of nowhere. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too. Of course that night meant something to me, Elena. Because well, it's you. It wasn't pity sex. I was just scared. Scared that if things went farther that I would end up losing you one day. But now in hindsight, I lost you anyway."

Elena retook his hand, "Friends?"

Damon looked at the diamond on her ring finger and softly said, "Yeah, friends."

"Well, I should go back to my friend, I'll see you later Damon."

Elena walked a few paces, but then Damon called out to her.

"Elena, wait. Would you like to have dinner with me tomorrow night? I'll make you my famous pizza…"

"Yeah I would like that, Damon," she smiled.

Once Elena made it through the bridal salon doors, she was instantly questioned by a confused Caroline.

"Who was that?"

"Oh, that was Damon, he's just a friend." Elena slightly cringed on the words _just a friend_. Damon was really so much more than that to her.

"You hold all of your male friends' hands and hug them like that?"

"It's nothing, Care. I love Stefan."

"If you say so…"

Elena bought the dress and headed home exhausted. She laid down on her bed and mulled over the day's events. Damon was now officially back into her life, and she couldn't have been any happier. Excitement brewed inside of her for their little "date" tomorrow night which she definitely wasn't going to tell Stefan about. She didn't need him all jealous over nothing. Because that's all it was between her and Damon. Nothing. Although her heart felt otherwise.

Speaking of Stefan, she looked down at her phone and saw and incoming call from him.

"Hey, Elena. You never called, so I got worried. Are you alright?"

At the moment, Elena was more than alright, not that she could tell him that. "Sorry, Caroline and I have been extremely focused on wedding planning all day. And I might've bought a dress…" she smiled.

"Oh, is that so?" Stefan chuckled. "Can I see said wedding dress?"

"On our wedding day like a good husband," Elena laughed.

"What are your plans for tomorrow night?"

"Care is going to drag me all over the place, getting all of our ducks in a row for our wedding. Don't worry though, I'll make it up to you," she said sexily.

"Well, I like the sound of that. But don't stress yourself out too hard. All I need is you, me, and someone to officiate and I'll be happy," he said seriously.

"Ok, I won't. I love you, Stefan."

"I love you too, Elena."

Elena felt bad about lying to Stefan. Except not enough to cancel her plans with Damon. Part of getting her ducks in a row for her wedding was figuring out where Damon was going to fit in her life again. And she was going to make sure she found that out tomorrow.


	6. Suspicions

A mixture of excitement and anxiousness bubbled up inside of Elena. She had one hour until she was supposed to have dinner with Damon at his apartment. Miraculously, he was able to get his old apartment thanks to Enzo. She sighed as she searched through her closet, looking for something to wear. She decided on something casual, a baggy knitted sweater and a pair of loose shorts. Her hair fell in loose waves, and she applied a bit of mascara and lip gloss-Damon always told her that she looked beautiful without makeup.

On her way to his apartment, Elena stopped at the store and bought a bottle of red wine as a housewarming gift and to wash away some of her nerves. She made her way to his doorway and hesitated for a second before knocking. Thirty seconds later, the door opened, revealing a flour covered Damon. He was dressed casually as well, in a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt. His raven hair was perfectly tousled, and he had a bit of stubble which made him look even sexier in Elena's opinion.

"Hey," he said, "I hope you don't mind that I took the liberty of already making your favorite pizza-supreme with pineapple."

"Mhm, that sounds amazing."

Elena stepped inside of the apartment and took in her surroundings. Damon had decorated his apartment to be an exact replica of when he used to live there. She glanced at the couch-_the couch where all of her problems started._ She remembered wrapping her legs around his waist, pulling his body closer to hers…

Elena shook herself out of her thoughts. Damon and her were just friends. Just friends. She was engaged to Stefan. _Stefan_. Ugh, she pushed her guilt from lying to him away and out of her mind. She would have plenty of time to feel guilty later. At the moment, she had to focus on her relationship with Damon.

They made their way to his kitchen, and she pulled out two wine glasses so they could drink her housewarming gift. Damon pulled out the pizzas from the oven, and they went to sit down to enjoy their meal. Damon swiftly went to Elena's side of the table first, pulling out her chair for her.

"Chivalry isn't dead you know," he said smirking.

Elena laughed and began to dig into the pizza that Damon made for her. Her heart swelled at the fact that he still remembered her favorite pizza. They ate in a comfortable silence for a few minutes.

Elena broke the silence, "So are you seeing anyone new? The girl at the restaurant the other night seemed nice."

"Nah, I'm not seeing Andie anymore."

"Oh, ok," she replied, trying to hide her excitement from him.

Damon stared at her engagement ring for a few moments too long, "How's the almost married life going, should I be expecting a wedding invitation in a few months?"

Elena looked down at her hands, "Sooner than that actually, Stefan and I are getting married next month."

"That soon? Don't you think you're rushing into things a bit, Lena?"

"I've chosen my future, and I want to start living it," she told Damon, but it sounded more like she was still trying to convince herself that was the reason.

Damon looked unconvinced, but he bit back any remarks he was thinking. "Well Lena, if you love him then I am happy for you. And I'll be the first person to buy you two a wedding present."

"Thank you. I appreciate the support from my _best friend_."

Damon smiled at her comment. He was glad that him and Elena were getting back into the routine of things, but it saddened him that _best friend _was his status. He would much rather be leveled up to _boyfriend_, but honestly he wished that his status was _fiancé_ or _husband._ Damon desperately wanted to tell Elena his feelings towards her, but he had just gotten her back. And he wasn't going to mess that up. He was just going to have to wait for the perfect moment to arrive. But now he only had a month to make that moment happen.

Damon and Elena eventually retired to the couch with new glasses of wine in hand. Elena rested her head on his shoulder, and they sat in silence nursing their drinks.

"Do you think my mom would be disappointed in me? She never wanted me to get married so young, I mean gosh I'm only 23 for crying out loud," she asked him in a pained voice.

"Elena, your mom could never be disappointed in you. You're doing what's best for you. Besides, Stefan seems like a nice enough guy, she probably wouldn't be disappointed in your choice in fiancé-I mean he's a freaking doctor for Pete's sake," he joked.

"Thanks, Damon. For everything."

"That's what _best friends_ are for, right?"

**Stefan**

Stefan started to compose a quick text over to Caroline. He wanted to make sure that Elena wasn't stressing herself too much over all of the details of their wedding, and he knew that Elena would hide her stress from him to make him feel better.

"_How's the wedding planning going Care? Elena isn't too stressed out is she?"_

"_Well, she needed to take a breather yesterday during dress shopping, but I don't know how she's feeling today, I haven't talked to her."_

"_Oh, ok. Thanks."_

So, Elena wasn't with Caroline like she told him she was. Not that he had any suspicions that Elena was cheating on him or anything, but something was definitely going on with her-she had started to become distant ever since the night he proposed. Stefan wondered if it had anything to do with that Damon guy. Elena seemed pretty shaken by his presence that night. _He would have to ask her tomorrow. _


	7. The Morning After

Stefan went straight to Elena's apartment the next morning to check on her before heading to his shift at the hospital. He hopped out of his car and went to her front door, knocking a couple of times. He waited for a couple of moments. No response. Stefan tried knocking again, but had the same result. He peered through her windows, feeling like a stalker to his own fianccé. All of the lights were off. He checked his watch, Elena would usually be up by now. So, Stefan reached his final two conclusions: either she got up really early to run some errands for whatever reason or _she spent the night somewhere else._

**Elena**

Elena was having an amazing dream. She was laying on a beach with her eyes closed, basking in the warmth of the sun. Her fingers played in the soft sand while warm waves lapped at her feet. She felt content for the first time in a long time. All of the stress from the wedding melted away and her body sunk into the comfort of the warmth.

Elena slowly woke up and sighed, sinking deeper into the strong, warm embrace that was encircling her. She lazily opened her eyes and took in her surroundings. In front of her was a fireplace and a coffee table with two empty wine glasses sitting on it. _This was not her apartment._ Uh oh. She turned her head and her cheek was pressed into a muscled chest. Her eyes darted up and she looked at her captor. _Damon._

He looked so peaceful in his sleep. Any sign of stress melted away from his face. His mouth was twisted upwards in a slight smile. Damon looked like he was having a good dream as well.

Her hand searched around for her phone. Shit. She only had an hour until she had her shift at the hospital. _Where Stefan would be waiting for her._ Shit, shit, shit. What would Stefan think of her night of laying in another man's arms? _A night that she thoroughly enjoyed. Way too much for her own good. _So it was decided. She couldn't tell Stefan that she went on a "date" with the man she used to be in love with then was cuddled up to him all night. She was going to have to lie. Again. More like withhold the truth. Not that that sounded any better. Oh well. He thought that she was wedding planning with Caroline anyway. If Stefan asked her any questions on her whereabouts, she would tell him that she stayed the night with Care.

As much as she wanted to spend the rest of the day wrapped up in Damon's arms, she had to go to work. Elena just hated to be the one to disturb his current state. But she had to-Stefan would surely ask her more questions that she didn't want to answer if she never showed up to work.

She turned her body to face him and his arms wrapped around her waist tighter-pulling her body closer to his. Her heart fluttered. God, she shouldn't be feeling this way-she was engaged-but Elena couldn't help but feel drawn to Damon. His intoxicating scent of sandalwood and pure masculinity sent warmth straight to her core. Her mind swirled with all of the dirty things they could be doing on the couch right now. Ugh, she really needed to go to work. She reached out and gently shook his shoulder. He sighed and slowly opened his eyes.

"Good morning, sleepy head," she huskily murmured, "I need to go to work."

Damon pouted, but released his arms from her body-much to Elena's disappointment.

"Thanks for last night, Damon. I had a good time."

"Anytime."

Elena rose to her feet and started walking towards the front door. Damon's hand shot out and stopped her.

"Wait. There's this place I want to show you. Tomorrow night?"

Elena knew she should say no. She had been very distant to Stefan lately, and she knew that she should be spending a lot more time with her future husband than she had been. But, she met Damon's icy blue eyes and pure sincerity shown through them.

"Yeah, I would like that, Damon."

He released her hand and smiled. "Can't wait. See ya later."

Elena hopped in her car and raced home. She was definitely going to be late to work. _It was worth it._ Despite her better judgement, she now had plans with Damon tomorrow night. Stefan's face appeared in her mind. She would make it up to him tonight.

**Stefan**

Stefan watched the hands on the clock tick by. Elena was twenty minutes late to her shift-_that was so unlike her._ At that very moment, Elena rushed in, looking very unput together.

"How was your night with Caroline?"

For a brief second, confusion flickered over her face then realization. "Care and I had a good time. I actually fell asleep at her place, that's why I was late."

Well that was a lie. Caroline had told him that she hadn't seen Elena at all yesterday. _What was she hiding?_ Stefan simply smiled at her. "Well, I'm glad. Just don't stress yourself too much with all of this wedding planning."

"I know I've been pretty distant lately, and I want to make it up to you. Come over and I'll make you dinner."

"Yeah, okay."

Elena smiled and walked over to him, giving him a light peck on the lips. "Okay, now let me get back to work," she chuckled.

Elena was definitely hiding something from him. What that was exactly, he wasn't sure. But he had caught her in a lie, and he would have to play dumb until gathered all of the evidence.


	8. Shower Indescretions

Elena's kitchen looked like a tornado had swept through it. Three pots were cooking on her stove-two of which were starting to overcook, marinara sauce somehow ended up on the ceiling, and flour covered every surface of her kitchen. Why Elena thought it was a good idea to make pasta from scratch, she wasn't sure. She wanted tonight to be perfect for Stefan-he deserved it. Secretly, Elena was also hoping that tonight would resurface the sparks that she felt for Stefan-sparks that had recently shot off like fireworks every time she was around a certain dark haired, blue eyed man. _Ugh, Damon._ Every time she was around him, all she wanted to do was rip off his clothes and…

Elena shook herself out of her thoughts. Tonight was about _Stefan._ She glanced at the digital clock on her stove-shit. Stefan was going to be at her apartment in a half an hour. She quickly turned off all of the burners on her stove and ran into her bedroom to get ready. Elena accessed the damage that her cooking had done to her appearance. Her clothes were covered in flour and she had sauce on her face, but other than that her makeup had remained intact. She stripped out of her clothes and put on black, lacy lingerie that emphasized her soft curves. On top of that she threw on her black, silky robe that Caroline had gotten her for Christmas. She curled her hair in loose waves and applied a bit of lip gloss. She took in her appearance in her floor length mirror-_Perfect._

Elena glanced at her phone. Fuck-she only had five minutes. She ran around her kitchen like a madwoman wiping down all the flour-covered surfaces. She heard three light knocks on her front door-Stefan was early. She opened the door and watched his jaw drop.

"Wow, Elena. You look…"

Elena cut him off with a searing kiss. Stefan stumbled back, caught off guard. Once he gained his composure, he returned the kiss with equal fervor.

Elena pulled back and looked into his eyes. "Hey, you."

"Hey, back. What was that for?" Stefan chuckled.

"I've missed you," she said sincerely. And Elena had missed Stefan. She wished they could go back to how they were a month ago when things weren't so complicated. More like when her emotions weren't so complicated. She was desperately in love with Stefan a month ago-which she was still in love with him now-but she couldn't ignore the flutter in her chest every time she saw Damon.

They made their way back into her apartment, and Elena presented Stefan with her homemade spaghetti. Stefan choked down every bite to be polite.

"Yeah, I guess you'll have to do all of the cooking after we get married," Elena joked.

His eyes radiated with happiness at her comment. "That can be arranged," Stefan said, smiling.

After they finished their meal, Elena stood up and sexily sauntered over to Stefan. "I want tonight to be all about you, Stefan." She then shed her robe, leaving her only in her lingerie. Elena straddled his lap and began kissing his neck-driving Stefan crazy with lust. She nibbled on his ear and gently tugged on the lobe, causing a low moan to come out of his mouth which egged her on more. She slowly unbuttoned his shirt and began to kiss down his chest. Elena unstraddled him and got on her knees in front of him, her face directly in front of his growing bulge. She undid his belt and unzipped his jeans, his manhood springing out of its denim prison. Elena licked her lips and slowly started pumping him with one hand while she cupped his balls with the other.

"Ugh, Elena," Stefan moaned, "_Please_."

She fulfilled his wish and wrapped her mouth around his sensitive tip. Stefan almost growled in pleasure. Elena then took all of him in her mouth, deepthroating him with the lightest scrape of her teeth. This sent Stefan into nirvana.

"Elena, I'm going to cum," he huskily moaned.

She continued her ministrations and started playing with his balls.

"Elena!" Stefan growled, his essence hitting the back of her throat.

Elena stood up and straddled Stefan's lap, kissing him passionately on his lips.

"Did I make it up to you?" Elena sexily asked.

"Definitely."

Elena woke up the next morning with Stefan's arms wrapped around her naked body. She sighed and snuggled into him further. She thought about her previous morning with Damon. _And how good it felt to have his arms around her_. Sure, she was satisfied with last night's events-Stefan was an excellent, attentive lover-but she couldn't help but imagine what it would've been like if she had spent the night wrapped around Damon instead. The mere thought caused wetness to pool around her inner thighs. _God, she needed a cold shower_.

She slowly untangled her limbs from Stefan and stepped into her shower, attempting to cool off the heat between her legs-it didn't work. Elena closed her eyes and imagined Damon stepping into the shower behind her, running his hands over her body, and his icy blue eyes darkened with lust. Damon would turn her around so that she was facing him and pull her into a passionate kiss that fried all of her nerve endings. He would then kneel so that his face was level with her throbbing core and start to lick her, focusing his attention on her bundle of nerves. _Elena needed to relieve the growing tension between her legs._ Her fingers made their way to her core and she started rubbing up and down, moaning in pleasure. Imagination Damon then pumped two of his fingers in and out of her, hitting her g-spot every time. Elena started rubbing harder at the thought and cried out. _She was close_. Damon stood up and wrapped one of her legs around his waist, positioning his hard length at her entrance. He pushed in with one stroke and growled at the sensation, causing Elena to get even wetter if that was possible. He pumped in and out of her and she moved her hips, meeting him at every thrust. He sped up his tempo, and the real Elena threw her head back in euphoria. She gasped out one word: "_Damon."_

**Stefan**

Stefan woke up content. _Last night was amazing_. Who knew that Elena could be such a seductress? Add that to all the reasons why he was desperately in love with her. He stretched out, noticing Elena was nowhere to be found. He got up to make coffee and heard the distant sound of water running behind her closed bathroom door. However, as his hand reached for the doorknob to join her, he heard one distinct word, or rather name roll off her tongue in a breathy moan: "_Damon."_


	9. A Confession

Elena stepped out of the shower, toweling her hair dry. After wrapping her robe around herself, she walked out of her bathroom, ready to rejoin Stefan in bed-but he was nowhere to be found.

"Stefan?" she called.

She padded around her apartment and caught him fully clothed about to walk out of her front door.

"Hey, what's got you leaving in such a hurry?"

"Sorry babe, I got called into the hospital early," Stefan said, but there was a hint of something else in his eyes-anger.

"Okay, well have a good day at work, honey. I love you."

Stefan looked at her for a moment and then left without saying another word. That was weird, Stefan always cooked her breakfast in the morning when he stays the night. Something was definitely bothering him...but what could it be? They had just spent a great night with each other, and now he wasn't even saying "I love you" back to her? What could have gotten him that worked up? Elena searched through her memories of last night and this morning...was there a possibility that he heard her little romp in the shower? But wouldn't he have been turned on at the thought of her touching herself unless…

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Did he hear her say Damon's name at the end? There was no way-that was barely a whisper-plus the water was running. How would Stefan be able to hear that? No, it was definitely something else that was bothering him-_it had to be._

"Ugh," Elena sighed and flopped on her bed. She was meeting up with Damon later today-butterflies fluttered around in her stomach. And then the guilt crept in. Maybe she should cancel, it wasn't fair to Stefan, but then she remembered the sincerity that had shown in his eyes. It wouldn't be fair to Damon either if she cancelled on him last minute. Besides, she had nothing to feel guilty about-Damon and her were _just friends._ Even if she was wildly attracted to him and had feelings for him...God, when did her life become so complicated?

**Caroline**

Caroline felt her phone start to buzz-_incoming call from Stefan Salvatore._

"Hey Stef, what's up? How was your hot, steamy night with Elena…"

Stefan cut her off, "What's the deal with this Damon guy?"

"What do you mean?" Caroline asked, with confusion apparent in her voice.

"Well, this morning I heard Elena moan his name while she was taking a shower…"

"YOU HEARD WHAT?!"

"Just tell me Care, is there something going on between the two of them?" Stefan asked softly.

Caroline thought back to that day she went dress shopping with Elena. Her and Damon were being pretty touchy, feely with each other...she couldn't tell Stefan that, though. Not until she found out the truth from Elena.

"She loves _you_, Stefan. Elena would never cheat on you, you know that. There's got to be some other explanation for that. Maybe you misheard her."

"Maybe...well thanks, I'll talk to you later, Care."

"Yeah, anytime." Caroline sighed as she hung up the phone, she seriously needed to talk to Elena.

**Elena**

Elena heard a light knock on her front door. There was Damon standing in all of his glory-his hair was slightly tousled, he wore a black t-shirt that emphasized his rippling muscles underneath, and his blue eyes shone with happiness-Elena thought he had never looked sexier.

"Hey, you." Damon smiled.

"Hey, back."

"Well, we better get a move on if we want to beat the rain," he told her.

They walked towards his car, but before she could hop in, Damon ran over to her side and held the door open for her-a gentleman as always.

"So, where exactly are you taking me?"

"That's for me to know, and for you to dot, dot, dot," Damon smirked.

Elena pretended to be annoyed, but in actuality, her mind was reeling with all of the possibilities of where they could be going. After a twenty minute car ride, Damon stopped at the edge of the forest and turned off the car.

"Where are we?"

"You'll see...you just gotta trust me."

"You know I trust you, Damon."

"Then you have nothing to worry about."

Damon led her around the forest for about ten minutes and then suddenly stopped.

"We're here."

"And where's that...oh my god, it's still here!?" Elena was thoroughly surprised-there nestled in the forest was the little cottage, more like hut, that they used to play in as kids. Damon and Elena would come there all the time while their parents would go hiking at the falls-Elena would make Damon play house, and Damon would make Elena play bank robbers. Elena's grazed the warped wood siding, blinking back the emotion in her eyes.

"Hey," Damon said softly and pulled Elena in his arms.

She rested her head in the crook of his shoulder and breathed in his comforting scent. "Thanks for bringing me here."

Memories of her and Damon throughout the years swirled in her mind-Elena tripping over a tree root and scraping her knee, Damon examining the scrape with concerned eyes and making her be his "patient" for the rest of the day. Damon climbing up trees and teasing her for being too scared to join him. Elena making Damon "marry" her and making him pretend like they were a couple who had just bought their first house…

Damon pulled back so that he could look her in the eyes, and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "I wanted to show you this place because some of our happiest memories happened right here, and I wanted to remind you that we could be like that again. We could be very happy together, Lena. And I know it's not fair to ask you this because you are engaged, but I'm tired of being fair. I love you, Lena. I want you to choose me instead of him."

"Damon…" Elena said softly. She looked up to meet his eyes and saw all of the raw emotion behind them. Those icy blue eyes would be the death of her…

Elena couldn't think-couldn't think of all of the reasons why she shouldn't be doing this-all she knew was what she felt, and what she felt at the current moment was pure, soul-crushing love for the man that stood in front of her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and crushed her lips to his in a fiery kiss that electrocuted every single one of her nerves. Damon immediately responded to the kiss-molding his lips around hers in an equal amount of passion. He pulled her soft body taut against his hard one and began kissing down her neck to the tops of her breasts. But Elena was having none of that-_she was running off of pure need. _She brought his face back to hers and slightly tugged at his bottom lip. His tongue lightly ran against her lip, asking for entrance, and Elena let him in-their tongues battling for dominance. She felt her back hit something-Damon had pinned her against the side of the cottage. She wrapped her legs around his waist tightly, grinding her core against his hardness. Damon growled at the contact. And that's when the rain started. In mere seconds, Damon and Elena were soaked to the bone, but they didn't care-they were too wrapped up in each other to notice a difference. He tightened his grip on her and carried her through the front door, gently laying her on the rug. She tugged on Damon's shirt, and he pulled it off. He then pulled off Elena's tank top, exposing her bra-clad breasts. He unhooked it, throwing it to the floor, and took one of the taut nipples in his mouth. Elena moaned and arched her back. But Elena was over foreplay at the moment-_she needed him_. She flipped him over so that he was on his back and quickly made work of getting out of both of their jeans. Now, nothing separated them. She pulled Damon into a searing kiss, and ran her dripping folds around his sensitive head. Damon moaned loudly at the feeling. She lined him up at her entrance and slowly sunk down on his hard length. Elena cried out in pleasure. She circled her hips around him, hitting all of her walls. _She needed more._

"Fuck me, Damon. _Please."_

Damon spun her around so that she was the one on her back, and lifted her legs so that they were wrapped around his shoulders. He quickly pumped in and out of her, hitting her g-spot every time. Elena screamed out in pleasure and ran her hands down his back, causing Damon to moan.

"_I'm close, Damon."_

"_Me too."_

He sped up his pace even more, and Elena's whole body started to shake from the amount of pleasure she was receiving. One more thrust, and Elena was gone-her head was thrown back, her back arched, and she screamed out his name. Her walls tightly wrapped around his member, and he was gone-crying out her name in euphoria.

Damon pulled out of her, and they laid there for a moment, trying to even out their erratic breathing. He pulled her body close to his, and Elena fell asleep, listening to Damon's heartbeat.


	10. The Truth Comes Out

Elena slowly gained consciousness, but didn't open her eyes. She sighed and snuggled closer to the warm surface she was laying on. _Thump. Thump. Thump._ The warm surface had a heartbeat. Elena slowly opened her eyes and took in her surroundings. She was lying on a rug in the old cottage that her and Damon played in as kids…

Suddenly, the events of last night came rushing back to her-Damon taking her to the cottage, him confessing his love for her, kissing him, the rain, and having sex with him. Elena smiled. She felt his change in breathing-he was awake. She crawled on top of him, straddled his waist, and leaned down to capture his lips with hers. It was a sweet kiss-not filled with the desperation she felt last night-but it was equally as passionate.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," she whispered huskily in his ear.

"Mhmmm...five more minutes."

"I bet I could make you consider otherwise," Elena said sexily.

"You're on," he murmured.

Elena began kissing him, starting at his jawline, she slowly moved down his neck then his chest until she reached his hardening length. She traced her tongue around the tip and then slowly took all of him in her mouth, slowly moving up and down. She then took her free hand and began massaging his balls…

In what felt like a millisecond, Elena found herself laying on her back with Damon hovering over her.

"Okay, you've convinced me."

Damon then began trailing kisses down her body in a similar fashion, paying extra attention to the hardening peaks on her breasts. When he made it to her throbbing core, he teased her by kissing her inner thighs.

"_Damon," _she whined, "_Please."_

He gave her what she wanted-caressing her folds with his tongue and then sucking on her bundle of nerves. This drove Elena wild.

"_More," _she gasped.

Damon then began pumping two fingers in and out of core, hitting her g-spot. At this, her hips began bucking wildly, and her legs began to shake at the intensity.

"_God, Damon. I need you."_

Damon took her legs and wrapped them around his waist, and then drove into her in one smooth motion. Elena screamed out in pleasure. He slid his length in and out of her at a fast pace-her hips meeting his every thrust.

"I'm so close," she moaned.

"Me too," he groaned.

He reached between their bodies, and began to rub her clit while he thrusted into her. This was too much for Elena to bear. Her nails raked against his back, and her entire body spasmed in a powerful orgasm. Her walls constricted around him and Damon lost himself in her throbbing heat. He slowly pulled out of her, and rolled them around so that Elena was laying on top of his chest. She looked down at him with a blissful expression on her face, and passionately kissed him. He held her face with one hand, and began stroking her soft tresses with the other. She swiped her tongue on his lower lip, and he let her in-their tongues dancing with each other in a perfect harmony.

As round two was about to start, Elena heard her phone buzz. Ugh, the real world was calling, and she didn't want to pick up. She sighed and looked at the new message-it was Caroline.

"_Elena Gilbert, this is URGENT."_

"_Meet me at my apartment in an hour."_

"Ugh, it's Caroline. I have to meet her at her apartment in an hour. Apparently it's "urgent"."

"Well, I guess we can't stay cooped up here all day. Although I wouldn't be opposed…" he smirked.

They slowly redressed themselves, wanting to savor the moment with each other as long as they could. Damon drove her home, his free hand resting on her thigh the entire trip. Once they made it to their destination, Elena started to speak.

"Look, Damon…"

Damon cut her off, staring at the ring that still sat on her fourth finger: "We can have the talk about last night later, right now you should go see what Caroline wants."

"Okay," she breathed, and then leaned over and crushed her lips on his.

Damon sighed and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "I'll call you."

"And I'm looking forward to it," Elena smiled.

Elena walked into her apartment and went to her bedroom. She peeled off yesterday's clothes and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She had a serious case of sex hair and her lips were swollen. Caroline would know something was up. She took a quick shower, and made her way over to Care's apartment.

After one knock on Caroline's front door, the door opened, revealing a Caroline who was eyeing her suspiciously. She let her in, and motioned for her to sit on her couch.

"So why does Stefan think there is something going on between you and Damon?"

_Shit._ He must've heard her in the shower like she originally thought. There were two ways she could go about this: A, she could lie to Caroline and pretend like she didn't know what she was talking about, or B, she could confess to Caroline all the dirty details and beg her not to tell Stefan. Either way, he could not know-it would break his heart. She decided to go with option A.

"I don't know what you are talking about, Care."

"Oh come on, Elena. Don't play dumb with me. There is clearly something going on between the two of you. Two people who are _just friends_ don't look at each other like that."

Elena was silent, and Caroline stared at her expectantly, waiting for her response. Damn, Elena was never good at lying. She looked down at her hands and sighed then looked back up at Caroline.

"I may have some unresolved feelings for Damon…"

"Look, I'm not going to tell Stefan on you. I just want you to be happy, Elena-both of you. And if you love someone else, you should stop wasting Stefan's time."

"I don't know what to do, Care," Elena broke down, "No matter what I do, someone gets hurt."

"Well, maybe these feelings for Damon are really you just having cold feet for your wedding. I mean, he's only been back in your life for a few weeks, and you've been in love with Stefan for over a year."

Elena wore a guilty expression. "I may have been hanging out with Damon behind Stefan's back."

"Did something happen between the two of you?!"

"Last night, he took me to this place we used to play in as kids, and all of a sudden, he was saying all of these things about how he loves me and wants me to choose him, and I may have kissed him."

"That's all that happened though, right?"

Elena's expression turned guiltier. "Things got really heated, and I slept with him. Twice."

Caroline had a shocked look on her face, but then she composed herself. "Well, how do you feel about him? Is it just physical or…"

"_I think I'm falling in love with him, Care."_

"What are you going to do?"

"...I don't know. I mean, I still love Stefan. But at the same time, I can't deny my feelings for Damon either. Damon and I have such a long history with each other."

"Well, it's all up to you. I can't tell you what you should do. Just make sure whatever you choose, it's what you really want. Because you're the one who is going to have to live with the consequences."


	11. A Wedding

"_Because you're the one who is going to have to live with the consequences."_

Caroline's words turned around Elena's mind for the next few hours. She felt like a terrible person. How could she betray Stefan like this? She couldn't help her feelings for Damon though-he was her oldest friend, her first love, and the person who made her feel most alive. At the same time, Stefan was the one to put her back together again after her big fight with Damon that had crushed her heart in a million pieces. What if her and Damon got in another big fight, who would put her together again then? She sighed and flopped down on her bed. This was going to be the biggest decision of her life so far-picking her major in college seemed like a cakewalk compared to this.

Elena wished her mom was with her right now-she could really use her advice at the moment. She thought back to her mom's funeral. Without Damon, she never would've gotten through that day. He was the one who held her hand and comforted her-_God, she had felt so safe in his arms._

At the same time, her and Stefan had a lot of great moments. They would eat lunch everyday in the hospital's crappy cafeteria-his smile and laugh somehow had the ability to light up the drab place. He was sensitive towards her feelings-he would hold her when she was upset and rub circles on her back, he would listen to her rant when she had a crappy day, and all around he was just a great guy.

She knew that her mom would tell her to follow her heart-but it was so hard when her heart was torn into two different directions. There was a fire between her and Damon, yet there was a tenderness between her and Stefan.

Elena stood up and pulled out the scrapbook of her and Damon that she had hidden away. She flipped through its pages, and her heart swelled at the images of young Damon. Tears pricked at her eyes-Damon was right-they used to be so happy together. The rest of her life could be that way if she chose him. She imagined lazy Sundays in bed, teasing each other about their greying hair, and most of all Elena imagined a little icy, blue eyed replica of Damon running around.

She could have all of those things with Stefan too, though. She pictured her and Stefan buying their first house, baking Christmas cookies with each other every year, and teaching a little Stefan doppelganger how to ride a bike. Elena stared down at the ring that rested on her fourth finger, and twisted it around her finger as a nervous tick. Somehow, the fake future with Stefan didn't feel the same to her as it did with Damon. She wanted the future with Damon-_she yearned for it. _She needed it to come to fruition almost as much as she needed air to breathe. Elena had her answer.

Elena didn't even wait for Damon to call her-she made her way straight to his apartment. Rain was coming down in sheets, but she didn't care. She hopped out her car and practically ran to her front door, instantly becoming soaked-Elena had never felt so free. She knocked on his door three times and waited. A minute later, the door opened, revealing a confused looking Damon. He stood there and appraised her rain-soaked appearance.

"Elena, you're going to get a cold standing out here."

"I don't care, Damon. Nothing in the world could possibly bother me right now."

Elena smiled and held up her left hand for Damon to see-_it was ringless._

Damon looked shocked, "Does this mean…"

"It means that I choose you, Damon. I am completely, head over heels in love with you. And there is nothing in the world that could change that."

Damon simply nodded, love shining in his eyes. He joined her in the downpour, took her face in his hands, and crushed his lips onto hers in a searing kiss. Elena wrapped her arms around him and returned the kiss with an equal passion. The two of them stood out there in the rain for a long time-two drenched fools who were madly in love.

_Six months later…_

Excitement bubbled up in Elena. Today was going to be one of the most important days of her life.

"God, Elena! You look so beautiful!" Caroline cried.

"Thanks, Care."

"Are you ready, Elena?" Elena's father asked, holding out his arm to escort her.

"_Yes."_

The church doors opened, and everyone stood up from their pews. _But Elena only had eyes for one person-Damon. _He stood there next to the pastor looking as handsome as ever in a classic tux and tousled raven hair. His icy blue eyes shone with happiness, and he donned the biggest grin she had ever seen.

After what felt like an eternity of walking down the aisle, she had finally reached him, and her father placed her hands into his. They exchanged their simple vows, but they could hardly pay attention to what was coming out of their mouths-neither could focus on anything else other than each other's eyes. The pastor announced them as husband and wife, and Damon took her face in his hands and kissed her in a way that made electricity course through her veins. _And her future with Damon began…_

_**The End**_


End file.
